31-10-81: The Boy Who Lived
by Lilybelmae
Summary: What really happened on that fateful Halloween Night 1981? Take a glimpse back in time and see how James and Lily perished and how Harry Potter became forever known as The Boy Who Lived.


**Disclaimer: I do NOT own the Harry Potter series. JK Rowling does.**

 **Also I do not own the Prince of Egypt or the song River Lullaby on which Lily's last lullaby is based. Dreamworks does.**

 _31 October 1981_

The wind rushed through the trees in the small village of Godric's Hollow. Leaves swirled around the streets and muggle children shivered as they skipped merrily down the streets trick-or-treating. What none of the villagers of Godric's Hollow knew however was that safely tucked away inside a hidden, small, warm cottage was the Potter family. From a first glance the Potters seemed like an average small family consisting of James, Lily and their small son Harry who was only 15 months old. The Potters, however, were anything but average. The Potters were a wizarding family. In fact, the Potters were the most wanted wizarding family in all of Great Britain.

You see, there was a mad, dark, sinister, power-hungry wizard calling himself by the name of Lord Voldemort who had wanted James and Lily Potter to join his ranks. Both James and Lily had refused his offer three times because Lord Voldemort was bigoted against muggleborn wizards and witches like Lily and was not above killing them to achieve what he believed to be the perfect wizarding world.

To make matters worse, a loopy young woman called Sybill Trelawney, who was now the Divination professor at Hogwarts School for Witchcraft and Wizardry, had made a prophecy concerning Lord Voldemort and the Potter's young son, Harry not too long before Harry was born. The prophecy said that one with the power to defeat Voldemort was coming. He would be born to those who had defied Voldemort three times and born as the seventh month ended. It was said that Voldemort would mark him as his equal, but the child would have power Voldemort did not know. The final part of the prophecy said that either Voldemort or the Chosen one must die at the hands of the other for neither one could survive whilst the other was still alive. It was for this very reason that the Potters and their friends the Longbottoms, who had a small son of their own called Neville who was born the day before Harry, were put into hiding.

The Potters had originally chosen James' best mate and Harry's godfather, Sirius Black to be their secret keeper when they placed the fidelius charm upon their house in Godric's Hollow. Sirius, however, was worried that Voldemort would know instantly that he was the secret keeper and would kill Sirius for not revealing the Potter's location leaving them forever hidden from the wizarding world. He recommended that James and Lily choose their other school friend Peter Pettigrew as secret keeper as Sirius believed no one would suspect the nervous and timid Peter of being the Potter's secret keeper. That and their other friend Remus Lupin was a werewolf and Sirius was wary of Remus' allegiance to Dumbledore due to many werewolves swearing loyalty to Voldemort because of their poor treatment in the wizarding world.

So, the fidelius charm was cast with Peter as the secret keeper although no one knew of the switch in secret keepers much to Lily's chagrin. The Potters had been hidden for over a year now and preferred not to think about the reason they were hiding. It only served as a reminder of the pain and misery they could not help prevent in their world because they had to protect their son. At the moment, the Potters were just finishing up their supper of shepherd's pie. Lily was washing the dishes while James bathed baby Harry. Lily smiled as she heard her boys laughter floating down from upstairs and assumed that they must be having a splash fight.

"James," Lily called.

"Yes, love?" James replied.

"Please don't make too much of a mess," Lily pleaded.

"Alright, my beautiful Flower," James called back happily.

Lily shook her head and finishing putting away the last of the dishes. When she walked into the sitting room she saw James entering at the same time holding Harry who was now clad in his pajamas. Lily giggled when she saw that James' hair was wilder than normal, looking as though it had just been blow-dried. James shot her a look that said, one word about my hair and you'll be sorry. He sat down on the couch with his son and began making smoke shapes for Harry with his wand. Harry laughed as he tried to catch the smoke shapes. Lily stopped giggling long enough to say to James,

"Nice hair,"

"Oh shut up," James grinned. "Harry and I had a little splash fight. Guess who won?"

Lily sat down next to James and kissed him gently. For the next little while, all was quiet except for Harry's sweet baby giggles. James continued to make smoke shapes for his son and both he and Lily thought about how lucky they were to be together and to be safe in their house. This was not to be, however, as a cold draft blew through the house extinguishing the fire roaring in the fireplace. The stench of death filled the house and a cold, menacing whisper that could only belong to Lord Voldemort sounded throughout the house:

"Haarrryyy Pottterrr"

Both James and Lily looked at each other in horror thinking, no, not here, not now. James dropped his wand on the couch and thrust Harry into Lily's arms.

"Lily, take Harry and go! It's him!" James cried. "Go! Run! I'll hold him off!"

Lily clutched Harry tightly to her chest and took off at a dead run towards the nursery. The door of the cottage flew open and Voldemort strode inside. James looked towards Voldemort and then towards his wand on the sofa and then back to Voldemort. I have to try, he thought, I have to try to protect Lily and Harry. James gasped as Voldemort strode towards the stairs.

"You keep away, you understand," James roared, charging at Voldemort, "You keep away"

Voldemort laughed a high, cold, cruel laugh, flicked his wand at James and called,

"Avada Kedavra!"

The spell hit James and he died instantly hitting the stairs with a sharp, loud, thud. Voldemort walked away, up the stairs, leaving James' corpse where it fell.

While this was happening, Lily had bolted into the nursery and locked the door in a feeble attempt to keep Voldemort out. Harry was whimpering and Lily shushed him gently. She rocked her son gently in her arms and sang softly,

"Hush now, my baby, be still love don't cry. Close your eyes as you're rocked now to sleep. Sleep and remember my last lullaby so I'll be with you when you dream."

Harry fell asleep and Lily laid him in his cot and kissed his soft forehead for the last time as she whispered,

"I love you, Harry."

All at once, the door was blasted off his hinges and Lily whipped around in fear to face the sinister smiling face of the man who had come to kill her baby. Shielding her child and thinking of nothing but his safety and how much she loved him, Lily pleaded,

"Not Harry, not Harry, please not Harry…"

"Stand aside, you silly girl…" Voldemort quietly commanded. "Stand aside now…"

"Not Harry, please no," Lily burst into tears. "Take me, kill me instead…"

"This is my last warning…" Voldemort hissed, starting to get annoyed as he twirled his wand in his hands.

"Not Harry! Please, have mercy…have mercy…not my son!" Lily screamed through her sobs. "Please! I'll do anything!"

Voldemort raised his wand and flicked it at Lily, just as she screamed Harry's name again for the last time and reached towards her son. As he did so, Voldemort spoke calmly,

"Avada Kedavra!"

The spell hit Lily and she collapsed in front of Harry's cot, dead. Voldemort stepped over her body and looked at the baby boy sitting in the cot looking back at him with wide, frightened green eyes. This was the one that was supposed to destroy him? Voldemort let out another cold, cruel laugh, flicked his wand at baby Harry and called,

"Avada Kedavra!"

Suddenly, a blinding light surrounded the baby as the spell meant to kill him recoiled hitting the evil man in front of him and sliced deep into the infant's forehead causing the poor little child to howl. Voldemort disappeared and as he did, though he himself did not know this, a piece of his soul, desperately looking for a living thing to attach itself to, flew into the scar on the bawling baby Harry's head. When the flash of light happened, the nursery surrounding the little boy collapsed around him. The baby was left orphaned, frightened and alone. As little Harry cried out into the night, a common garden rat crept out of a bush in front of the house with a wand between his teeth and skulked off into the night.


End file.
